DRW’S Guide to the Best Pain Management Apps for iPhone & Android

THE DIFFERENT OPERATING SYSTEMS

Apple’s iPad & iPhone only uses Apple’s iOS operating system so any App you buy from the iTunes store will be for iOS devices only. (Like iTunes Google Play also only caters to android system users.)

PRICE DIFFRENCE FOR APPS ON ITUNES AND GOOGLE PLAY

As you go through this guide, you may often times see a small price difference between the recommended Apps for which you need to pay. The reason for this difference has to do with the store and the type of operating system the smart phone uses. The iOS operating system is a much more closed and restricted operating system then Android. The reason for this has to do with the fact that Apple designed it so that the device could be regulated better and reduce the amount of viruses that can infiltrate Apple devices. Apple prides itself with this fact and as result does extensive screening of the Apps for viruses before they put them on to the iTunes store. To pay for this, they make iOS App developers pay a service fee to be able to put their Apps on the iTunes store. As a result, if an App is popular and successful the App developer might raise the price from what it was initially so that they can not only make a profit, but also use the money to help pay for the service fee Apple charges them. Unlike the iTunes store, Google Play does not charge App developers a fee to be able to put their Apps in the store nor do they do the same intensive screening that Apple does. Google has been criticized for this as there has been a few virus-laced Apps that have slipped Google’s screening process and have gone into the Google Play store. The fact that Google does not charge App developers a service fee is most likely one of the major reason for the price difference.

DISCLAMIER NOTICE

Individuals who use these Apps should be aware that none of these Apps have been approved by doctors or created by doctors. In January 2014, a study in the “Journal of Opioid Management” found that, of 220 pain Apps on the market in 2012, at least 80 percent appeared to have been created without the input of a health care professional. With this mind, it is suggested that you talk to your doctor about whether any of these Apps might work for you and which features of an App may be important for your particular condition. Doing this will also make sure you don’t waste your time or money.

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THE TOP 5 BEST PAIN MANGMENT APPS FOR IPHONE AND ANDROID

MY PAIN DIARY: CHRONIC PAIN MANAGEMENT

iTunes Price: $5.99 https://goo.gl/2Zz4zK

Google Play: $4.99 https://goo.gl/eTdprM

FEATURES

Unlimited tracking: Track unlimited conditions, symptoms, triggers, etc. Track multiple times a day if needed. Creates entries for dates in the past. Edit entries at any time.

Weather tracking: Weather data is saved automatically with each new entry and can be compared against your pain using the interactive graphs.

Photo attachments: Document your swelling, rash, discoloration, etc with photos.

Color coded calendar: Get a sense of your progress with just a glance.

Interactive graphs: Overlay various ‘metrics’ to get a whole new look at your pain. Want to see if something makes your pain worse? You can do that with the graphs.

Doctor Reports: Detailed reports can be emailed or printed for you and your doctors. The PDF reports can be configured to suit your needs and optionally include a graph, photos, notes and weather data.

Editable Pain Scale Descriptions: MPD comes with a reasonably good default pain scale. However, you should consult with your doctor and replace it with their pain scale.

Private Entries: Flag an entry as ‘Private’ and it will NOT show up on a Doctor’s Report.

Reminders: Keep consistent entries with the help of the built-in reminder system.

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Passcode Lock: Get an extra layer of security by locking MPD. A 4-digit pass will be required to access the data.

Dropbox Backup: Ensure you never lose your data. Regularly backup your entries to Dropbox.

CATCH MY PAIN -THE PAIN DIARY

iTunes Price: Free https://goo.gl/Y7Hgpe

Google Play Price: Free https://goo.gl/X9Q0y3

FEATURES

Create detailed color pain drawings to express the location and the intensity of your pain

Have the course of your pain visualized by a graph which is calculated based on your pain drawings

Exchange best practices with similar patients in our community!

Export your pain diary and share it with your care providers

Describe the quality of your pain (hot, cold, electrifying, ...)

View statistics about your short- and long-term pain

Track events or circumstances which increase or ease your pain

Keep track of your pain level (VAS)

Specify the time of occurrence of your pain

Track your overall happiness

Enter diagnoses

add comments to each pain entry

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Use the diary to explain your pain to any care provider.

Share your pain diary by email

WEBMD PAIN COACH

iTunes Price: Free https://goo.gl/prCH7i

Google Play Price: Free https://goo.gl/qnDMNo

FEATURES

WebMD Pain Coach™ is organized into four easy-to-use sections:

JOURNAL: The Journal section allows you to quickly and easily record your day. A

separate Journal screen exists for each day. Once entries are created for multiple

days, flip back to see your pain history. Turn your phone sideways to generate your

Pain Coach™ Report: a historical chart that plots your general well-being against

your pain levels while listing your most common symptoms, triggers and

treatments. Tap on a day to view a snapshot of your pain history and export your

Pain Coach™ Report to PDF and email it to yourself or your physician.

♦ Record how you generally feel each day by sliding the Pain Coach™ ‘Well Being

Belt.’

♦ Log a pain entry to track details surrounding pain: pain level from 1-10,

symptoms, triggers, treatments and notes.

♦ Reminder to log a pain entry by receiving a Pain Coach™ notification once a day.

♦ View a new Daily Tip that is personalized to your condition(s), triggers and

treatments.

♦ If you set goals to better manage pain, tap ‘Today’s Goals’ to check off achieved

goals.

Goals: The Goals section allows you to browse and select physician-approved goals

from five lifestyle categories related to your pain condition(s): Food, Rest, Exercise,

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Mood, and Treatments. You can also create your own goals. Each related tip can be

viewed before selecting a goal. The goal duration can be set from one day to one

year.

♦ The green ribbon at the top of the Goals screen indicates the percent completion

rate for active goals.

♦ Once a goal is selected, tap ‘My Goals’ to view Goal Activity for active and

completed goals.

♦ If you have more than one chronic pain condition, the goal that is suggested for a

specific condition is indicated.

Library: The Library section contains all of the critical, physician-approved content

relevant to your condition(s) and pain management. The Library contains hundreds

of articles, videos, slideshows and quizzes. All articles are available for offline

reading.

♦ Library content contains links to WebMD’s mobile website.

♦ The Library is searchable.

♦ Share all Library content via email, Facebook or Twitter.

Tips: The Tips section features hundreds of ‘bite-sized’ tips that are matched with

goals and organized into the same five lifestyle categories: Food, Rest, Exercise,

Mood and Treatments. Each goal has between 3-10 supporting tips.

♦ Search for a specific tip.

♦ After reading a tip, view the goal related to the tip, or view related Library

articles.

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MANAGE MY PAIN LITE & PRO

Google Play Price: Free for the original version of the app.

Pro version price is $3.99

https://goo.gl/mNhp6e

Important Side Note: You need to install the free manage my pain lite app first in order to upgrade to the pro version.

FEATURES FOR LIGHT VERSION

Track my Pain Light allows you to:

• Get insight into your condition through statistics, charts, graphs, and calendar

views

• Sync with the cloud to safe-keep your records and keep all your devices up to date

• Share what you're going through by creating evidence-based reports for diagnosis,

treatment, and claims

• Personalize your account by recording your medical and personal characteristics

• Get support from a responsive team and detailed user guides

.

FEATURES FOR PRO

The Pro version adds:

• The ability to view more than 10 records

• Background sync capabilities

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CHRONIC PAIN MANAGER

Google Play Price: Free https://goo.gl/p5f4KI

FEATURES

• Visual medication reminders

• Our unique Medfriend feature is syncing family members' devices and medication in real time.

• Receive reminder notifications even if your device is asleep

• New! Track your measurements alongside your medication regiment and see how you’re impacting your health for the better

• Medtones (medication ringtones) to customize your reminder sound, including Austin Powers, Dr. Evil, President Obama, characters from Star Wars, or even your Nagging Mom.

• See what is "due today" on your medication list.

• Rx refill reminders and special discount offers.

• List PRN medication (on demand/as required pills).

• See your medication progress report and send it to your nurse, physician or clinic.

• Sync reminders with your Android Wear Smart Watch.

• New! Medication discount card, price comparison and coupons with GoodRx, the leading medication pricing app (US only).

• Automatic, bank-level secure backups of your info on our HIPAA-compliant servers.

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